Once you’ve developed a passion for roller coasters, you will go to almost any lengths to indulge it. Last September I applied for a credit card which would give me 25,000 air miles just for signing up, for the sole purpose of financing a trip to Holiday World to ride The Voyage in May. I wanted to find out what all the fuss was about - why The Voyage got the 2010 Golden Ticket award for #1 wooden roller coaster and why so many so-called experts put it at the top of their lists. So off I went on my own voyage, more of a pilgrimage, to ride this colossus. And I must say that it was a hell of a ride. The chain lift ascent up the first hill was remarkably smooth (about the only part of the ride which was, and I mention the ascent only because I am not a fan of chain lifts); so far, so good. The first, sizeable (154-foot) drop at a 66-degree angle was wonderful; I would even go as far as to say thrilling.

The rest of the ride was pretty spectacular, with plenty of airtime, great scenery and a superabundance of highly banked turns. The Voyage feels totally out of control and never lets up for a moment except at one point during the latter part of the ride when it loses speed before entering a tunnel with a small curve. (This is the only one of the many tunnels which has a curve.) The Voyage is notable for its triple down, during which the train descends underground, drops again in the dark and makes another plunge. All in all, a great ride, and a relatively long one. However, as good as The Voyage is, it does tend to be rather rough, and after 7 rides I was feeling the wear and tear. The succession of overbanked turns is almost too much of a good thing. That being said, this coaster is nevertheless unquestionably one of the best wooden coasters I've ever ridden. I give The Voyage 5 out of 5 stars. For more information about the park and rides, visit www.holidayworld.com. Photo of The Voyage courtesy of www.coasterimage.com, a great website for roller coaster photos.